Sweden mulls sending troops to Golan Heights

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The UN has asked Sweden to contribute peace-keeping troops to the Israeli-Syrian border region the Golan Heights, as tensions in the region mount.

The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported on Wednesday that UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon had spoken with Swedish representatives about the possibility of Scandinavian military personnel replacing Austrian soldiers as part of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), which has patrolled the area since 1974.

"It's in very preliminary stages," an Israeli official told AFP on Thursday on the condition of anonymity.

"It hasn't been established yet who agrees, who wants it. The conditions are not clear."